LOS ANGELES — Wells Fargo Bank employees driven by strict sales pressure issued unwanted credit cards and opened unauthorized accounts that charged customers fees and damaged their credit, according to a lawsuit filed by the city of Los Angeles.

The civil complaint filed Monday contends the largest California-based bank violated state and federal laws by misusing confidential information and failing to notify customers when personal information was breached, City Attorney Mike Feuer said Tuesday.

“In its push for growth, Wells Fargo often elevated its profits over the legal rights of its customers,” Feuer said.

The bank has blamed the problems on a few rogue employees who have been disciplined or fired and said it would defend itself.

The city’s investigation found only token efforts to prevent wrongdoing, according to court papers.

The lawsuit seeks a court order ending the alleged practices along with penalties up to $2,500 for every violation and restitution for affected customers. It focuses mostly on what’s known in the industry as bundling, also called cross-selling, where bank employees try to sell multiple bank products to a customer who may have just come in to open an account or apply for a credit card.

Bundling and cross-selling has been a widely accepted practice in banking for years, mostly without controversy.

Wells Fargo has had a long history of cross-selling and bundling, averaging more than six products per household, according to its latest annual report.